tonight, tonight, the world is wild and bright
by particularly good finder
Summary: Brittany's always has had an abundant, if not overactive, imagination. She experiences wild, frighteningly realistic dreams, but has learned to control them as she's grown older. Sort of.
1. Prologue

_tonight, tonight__  
__the world is wild and bright__  
__going mad__  
__shooting sparks into space_

_

* * *

_

Though Brittany isn't the sharpest tool in the shed (heck, she doesn't even know where this so-called shed is!), she's always had an abundant, if not overactive, imagination. She loves to watch TV, go to the movies, and sometimes, on occasion, read books (but slowly; there are _a lot_ of words in those things).

In fact, her imagination is so strong, that the girl often experiences wild, frighteningly realistic dreams. It caused problems for her parents when she was little and easily scared, but as she's grown older, Brittany has learned to control these dreams a bit, not be so frightened by them.

Sort of.


	2. Brittany the Vampire Slayer

_the past is gone_  
_it went by, like dusk to dawn_  
s_ing with me, if it's just for today_  
_maybe tomorrow, the good lord will take you away_

_

* * *

_

"Wait, why do their faces look like that?" Brittany asks Artie as he passes her some popcorn. The bespectacled boy sighs, launching into an explanation.

"Because they're getting ready to bite someone. That's how Joss Whedon's vampires work. When they're just talking and stuff they look like humans, but when they attack, their faces get all scrunched up and scary-looking."

The unlikely pair is sitting in Artie's living room, watching old episodes of _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_. The scrawny boy isn't sure _how_ they ended up here, but figures it has something to do with the previous day's argument between Rachel and Quinn about Twilight and Edward Cullen and other things that a teenage boys like himself despise with a fiery passion.

"Oh," Brittany says, watching the screen in fascination. "Weird."

It's getting late, but neither teen wants to end the geek-marathon. So they dive into a pack of Red Bulls and pop in the next disk. Another hour passes, though, and Brittany is shooed from the house by Artie's mother, who realizes that _yes_, it is a school night, and _yes_, her son needs to sleep.

The next morning was killer for the Cheerio. She has gone the night without any sleep thanks to the three Red Bulls she had chugged, and dreads cheer practice that afternoon.

First period comes too quickly, and seems to drag on and on. But by the time the bell rings for second, something is terribly wrong.

The hallways are dark, the windows boarded up so very little sunshine can seep through. Students are being herded to the gym for an assembly, but something in Brittany's heart tells her not to go with them. Instead, she slips into the choir room, ducking into Schuester's office.

"Oh my God!" The choir room door slams shut, and Brittany looks out to see Rachel, Puck, and Kurt moving the piano in front of it, all breathing heavily.

"Brittany! You're okay!" Artie shouts, and the other three turn, panic on their faces.

"What's going on?" She asks, confused. Though both Kurt and Rachel are prone to breaking out into hysterical dramatics for petty things such as bad hair days and pimples, Puck _never_ loses his cool. Ever.

It's Rachel who answers, and for once no one looks like they want to shove a sock in her mouth. "They were making everyone go to the assembly, but thanks to _Noah_," she turns and glared at the boy, who puts up his hands defensively. "We were late. As we approached the doors, we saw Ms. Sylvester ordering the Cheerios to lock all the other exits, and when she turned to yell at one of them, her face was all scrunched up and terrifying!"

Brittany just looks at Artie, who has gone as white as a sheet. "So Coach is a vampire?"

Puck looks ready to smack the Cheerio, but Kurt speaks first. "Who _knows_ what was wrong with her, but after they locked all the doors – we were hiding behind some lockers at this point – they all went into the auditorium, and when the door closed, everyone started _screaming_."

Brittany looks down, upset. "You mean she started a pep rally without me?"

Kurt smacks his forehead and Puck throws his hands into the air in exasperation. Rachel looks like she was going to faint, however, and sits on the floor, head in her hands.

"No, Britt," Artie says, wheeling closer to her. "Screaming like they were being attacked."

The girl feels her face pale. "So Coach _is_ a vampire."

Puck groans, but Artie nods in affirmation. "As far as I could tell, she was vamped, as were the rest of the Cheerios."

Brittany gasps, tears filling her eyes. "Even Santana?"

Artie makes to say something, but Kurt jumps in, shooting the bespectacled boy a look. "No. I don't know. We didn't see her."

The blonde girl nods, relief flooding her body. Maybe San has decided to stay at home today.

"Alright, Wheels, if these _are_ vampires, how the hell do we escape?" Puck cracks his knuckles, and the sound makes Rachel look like she was going to throw up.

"We have to get to the main entrance," Artie says, wringing his hands together. "It's the only one not boarded up from what I can tell."

Puck nods, flexing his fingers. "And how do we get past Count Cheer-ula and her team of bloodsuckers?"

It's Brittany who answers, to the shock of everyone except Artie. "We have to stake them. Like Buffy."

Puck quirks an eyebrow and Rachel starts sobbing. Kurt shoots the Cheerio a confused look. "And by stake, you mean…?"

Artie makes a stabbing motion with his arm, and Kurt nods, looking shocked.

"Where do we get stakes?" The room grows silent as they all turn to Rachel, who is shakily getting to her feet, wiping the tears from her cheeks.

"They're made of wood, right?" Puck asks. Artie and Brittany nod in unison, and the mohawked boy scowls in concentration.

"Wait, Artie, how do we stab them? I mean, Buffy could do it easily 'cause she was The Slayer. We're just normal humans." Brittany isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but things tend to stick with her when they're on TV.

"Well, you and Puck are pretty strong, I suppose. We don't really have any other options." The Cheerio nods, and both turn to the sound of breaking wood.

"Noah! What are you doing?" Rachel nearly screams as the large boy smashes the piano bench to the ground, breaking off the legs.

"Saving our asses, that's what," he replies coolly, pulling out a pocket knife. With the agility of a skilled hooligan, he carves the legs into points, until the group has four crude stakes.

"But there's five of us…" Rachel whispers, and the group falls silent.

"You think I didn't notice? Artie doesn't need one," Puck replies gruffly, tossing the other members stakes as they stare at him in shock.

"Just because he's crippled doesn't mean he can't fight too!" Kurt says angrily, poking his finger against Puck's chest.

The football player shoves him back, snarling. "That wasn't what I meant. Artie's chair is going to get in the way of our escape. He's going to need his arms to hang onto my back while I stake those bastards. Chill out, guys."

The group relaxes, and Artie shoots Puck a grateful look. The jock just shrugs, hoisting the frail boy onto his back. "Choke me and I stake you, got it?" He says menacingly, but Artie just nods, smiling slightly.

"Everyone ready?" Rachel whispers and the group nods, hearts threatening to break out of their chests. Kurt grabs Brittany's hand, squeezing it slightly.

"Go!" Puck says, and they rush from the room into the deserted hallway. Without stopping to question their supposed luck, the five teenagers run, stakes clasped tightly in their hands.

"And where do you think you're going?" A cold, amused voice asks, causing the group to turn. Tina approaches them, flocked by a posse of other glee club kids, and Brittany wonders why she put so much makeup on. She's always pale, but now – she looks like death.

"We're escaping," Brittany answers, and Kurt elbows her in the ribs, scowling.

"No, I don't think you are." The voice comes from Mercedes, who's licking her lips in a creepy fashion. Puck tightens his grip on his stake, and Artie tightens his grip on Puck.

Behind Tina and Mercedes are Matt, Mike, Quinn, and Santana, all of whom look ravenous.

"Say goodbye, friends. We'd love to chat, but we're _starving_," Santana says, staring at Brittany.

"But San, Coach said you have to drop two pounds by next week. Eating probably isn't the best thing to do-" Brittany says, but her best friend just laughs.

"Oh, I think what Coach doesn't know wont hurt her." The group moves in towards the five teenagers, faces distorted.

"RUN!" Puck shouts, sprinting down the hall. Rachel follows immediately, screaming at the top of her lungs. Brittany stays her place, staring at Santana broken-heartedly, until Kurt grabs her hand and pulls her down the hall, chasing after Puck.

But the vampires are quicker, and Brittany falls as Mike grabs her shirt. Kurt kicks him away, pulling his friend up as Quinn jumps Rachel, letting out a blood-curling scream.

Puck wastes no time staking the blonde girl though the heart, all thoughts of past love gone. Artie stares at the pile of dust that was Quinn Fabray and shivers.

Mike and Matt double-team Brittany this time, but Kurt is prepared. As Matt reaches out to grab the Cheerio's neck, the small soprano shoves his stake through the jock's heart, grunting with exertion. Brittany quickly follows his lead and stakes Mike before he can react.

Mercedes grabs Kurt from behind, hissing, but Rachel comes to his aid, stabbing the fashionista with as much force as she can muster. It takes a moment, for Rachel's arm is much weaker than Puck's or Brittany's, but soon Mercedes is just another pile of dust, and Kurt is left stunned, rubbing his neck where she tried to bite him. Santana is gone, and the group stands still breathing heavily.

"Holy. Shit." Puck nearly doubles over, but remembers Artie is still on his back.

"Oh, man. That was…intense…" The bespectacled boy says, letting out a laugh of relief.

"You can say that again," Puck mumbles, hoisting the boy into a better position.

"That was in- _AHHH!_" The group jumps as Artie is thrown from Puck's back, slamming into a locker and falling to the ground. Out of nowhere Tina is crouched over his body, fangs bared.

"ARTIE!" Puck shouts, running towards him.

"No! No! More are coming! I can hear them! Run! Leave me!" The frail boy screams as Tina punctures his neck, malice in her eyes.

"We're not leaving you-!" Puck tries to shout, but Rachel is pulling him along. "ARTIE!"

"RUN!" And that's the last they hear from him before his screams die out and the laughter of the vampires draws nearer.

Brittany feels like crying, but knows she can't until they escape. They have lost one friend (if you don't count all the ones who were vamped), but she'll be damned if they lose another.

They keep running down the hall, until the laughter behind them dies down and silence once again takes over.

"I…I can't believe they got Artie…" Rachel whispers, shaking. Pucks turns on her, glaring.

"We could have _saved_ him! We _should_ have saved him! God DAMMIT!" He punches the wall, chest heaving up and down rapidly. Rachel looks stunned, but Kurt just looks away, taking Brittany's hand again.

"We would have _died_, Noah! All of us! And Artie too! I love Artie as much as you do, but his death was not in vain! There are still four of us, here, alive! There was nothing we could do!"

Puck pins her against the locker, and she is shocked to see tears in his eyes. "Nobody dies on my watch, Berry. _No one._"

"Can we save the dramatics until _after_ we escape?" Kurt interjects, sighing heavily. "It's all well and good when we're all sitting around bored during glee practice, but when our lives are in danger, being angry with each other just isn't a great idea." He scowls at both of them, placing his hands on his hips. "Artie was a good friend, but he's not the only one we've lost today. If you _remember_, we just staked four of our closest friends. And if we want to survive, we'll have to stake more. So if the both of you would just _shut up_, maybe we can focus on _surviving_."

Puck lets go of Rachel, hanging his head. "Fairy-boy's right. We can fight about this later. Right now, we need to get the hell outta here. Which way to the main entrance?"

Rachel sighs and points down the hallway to their left. Puck nods and leads the way, raising his stake in defense. The others follow, biting their lips and baring their teeth with anxiety.

"Well, well, well. Santana was right. Some of our friends have dropped by for lunch." Brittany's heart speeds up as she turns with the others to see Finn Hudson, pale and hungry looking. By now she's realized that any friend they come across is a vampire, whether their faces are all gross looking or not.

"Finn…" She hears Kurt whisper sadly, and before she knows what is happening, Puck and Rachel are running. Brittany follows, pulling Kurt with her.

They run into an empty classroom, locking the door and pushing a desk in front of it. Puck looks around the room, groaning. The windows here are boarded up, too, and there are no other doors to escape through. Rachel's thoughts seem to mirror Puck's, and she twirls around in a circle, looking desperately for a way out.

"Noah!" She gasps, pointing at a spot high up on one of the walls.

Puck grins, kissing her on the cheek. "Perfect!" Using a desk as a stool he climbs up to the air vent, and pries away the screws with his knife. As he works quickly on the grating, the door begins to shake as Finn rams his body against it. The desk blocking it begins to jump away with each collision, and the group realizes their barricade wont last much longer.

"Got it!" Puck whispers, throwing the vent cover to the ground. Rachel claps with excitement as the jock crawls into the vent, beckoning for the others to join him. Rachel scrambles up the desk quickly, flashing Kurt and Brittany as her skirt rides up. Brittany goes next, and she is just adjusting herself when a cracking sound comes from across the room, indicating the short life expectancy of the door's lock.

Without a word Kurt grabs the vent cover and puts it back into place, then begins to screw it back in, using a ruler from the desk as a screwdriver.

"Kurt? Kurt, what are you doing?" Brittany asks, using her Cheerio flexibility to position herself facing him inside the vent. "Kurt?"

"Get out of here, Brit. I'll be fine," he replies coolly. Brittany still isn't sure what her friend is doing, but she doesn't like the sad look on his face. He's _Kurt_. He's one of the bravest, strongest people she knows. He isn't supposed to look _sad_.

"What are you doing?" She asks again, but he doesn't reply. The door bangs open, the lock finally breaking, and Finn steps inside, fangs bared.

"Tricky. Oh, well, Santana will catch up with the other. I guess it's just you and me, Kurt." Finn steps closer to the small boy, who holds his head up high, a determined look on his face.

"Over my dead body," Kurt spats, gripping his stake tightly. Finn chuckles darkly, running a finger across the boy's cheek.

"That can be arranged." The vampire lurches at Kurt, mouth at the boy's neck. Brittany tries to scream, but somehow Rachel has come up behind her, clasping her hand over the blonde girl's mouth.

Kurt's body droops, his stake-clutching hand dangling loosely by his side. Brittany starts to cry, and Rachel removes her hand, rubbing circles on the girl's back.

"Isn't this what you always wanted, Kurt? To be this close to me? Well, I'm right here. Say it: 'Take me, Finn. Take me.' _Say it_." Finn runs his mouth tauntingly up Kurt's neck, to his jaw, to the corner of his mouth.

Kurt shivers, and whispers, "Take me, Finn. Oh fuck, take me!"

The vampire grins wickedly, and plunges his fangs into Kurt's neck, clutching at the boy's body like a lover would, mockingly.

Rachel isn't quick enough this time, and before she can react Brittany screams, "KURT!"

Finn looks up, distracted by the noise, blood dripping down his face. Kurt starts mumbling, face pale and eyes unfocused.

"_Take me…take me…_" Finn smirks, but has eyes for Brittany and Rachel hiding in the vent. As he licks the blood from his lips, transfixed on his next meal, Kurt stiffens, his voice louder and clearer. "Take me, Finn. Take me to Hell."

Finn screams as Kurt plunges the stake into his heart, exploding into a pile of dust in the boy's arms. Kurt lets out a laugh, then a sob, before collapsing to the ground, a pool of blood gathering underneath him.

Rachel pulls Brittany along, and the two girls crawl through the vent until they find Puck's new opening. They jump through, both falling roughly to the ground.

Suddenly, Brittany's thrown across the room. From somewhere far away she hears Rachel scream. Puck is nowhere to be seen. Brittany can only hope he escaped.

She opens her eyes to see Santana walking towards her, licking her lips in the sexiest, if not scariest, manner possible.

"San…" Brittany whispers, scrambling backwards. She whimpers as she hits a corner, with no escape in sight. Santana lowers her body down, straddling the blonde girl.

"Santana…please…" Brittany starts to cry again as she feels her best friend's lips on her neck. "Please…please don't eat me…"

"Britt? Britt, wake up!" Brittany starts, opening her eyes to find herself in first period, with five minutes until the bell. Santana is standing over her, arms crossed.

"Don't eat me!" Brittany screams, nearly falling out of her seat. Santana just rolls her eyes, sitting on the girl's desk.

"You were dreaming, Britt. I'm not going to eat you." Brittany sighs, letting herself relax. "But Coach might if you fall asleep during practice. You better watch out."

Brittany screams, running from the room shouting, "I _KNEW_ COACH WAS A VAMPIRE!"

All Santana can do is laugh, and follow her friend as the bell rings. Britt _really_ needs to stop watching TV on school nights.

**Review please! Up next: either Hogwarts or zombies, I haven't decided yet. If you guys have any suggestions about other dreams for Brittany, please tell me! I only have a couple right now, so I need inspiration! =)**


End file.
